Maya Ad Astra

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2020

Stories (10)

10 Stories

430 karma pts

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“When All We Have Left Are Memories” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #94

When we broke up I wish I didn’t remember so much about that day. Caleb and I were fighting. It was raining. He had an umbrella and I didn’t. I refused to stand under his no matter how much he asked. He thought it was because I was being stubborn. Too contrary for my own good, he would say. He was wrong. Standing in the rain made it easier to mask the tears. I’ll never admit it though. “Tell me you love me,” I said. “Tell me you need me. Tell me anything that’ll keep me from walking away from you right now.” I didn’t want much. I just needed...

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“Night Shift at the Clarion” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #91

Clarion Municipal Library sits on a hill like a lighthouse beckoning all that need refuge to find it within her walls. She is a gorgeous brick building that’s one floor plus a basement. Stars above me wink knowingly as I climb the steps to the front door. “Are you ready?” They seem to ask. I don’t need to form a reply. There’s no being ready for the night shift at the Clarion. “Miss Fewter, you’re late.” Mrs. Andrews appears by my side the second I open the door. She’s an old woman with curly white hair that’s put up into a stiff bun. She ...

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“No Rest for the Wicked” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #83

Beneath the sea’s surface, I am at peace and everything is quiet. I wish I could stay down here forever where the hardest problems I have is telling the difference between the fish that swim near me and pruny skin. But my lungs need oxygen and it isn’t long before I swim up to the surface and breathe in sweet, fresh air. Above water, I’m greeted by the sounds of seagulls shrieking and children playing at the beach with their families. As I step out of the water, every noise comforts me as it means I’m on my first vacation in a very long time...

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“Once Loved, Always Loved” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #81

I am standing on the edge of a cliff looking out into the horizon that stretched out before me. Saltwater licks at my cheeks and a wind from the east blows back my hair. I turn around and there he was standing behind me. His facial features are a blur, but I can hear his voice, a resonating tenor as beautiful as a song. “Lucinda, please,” he says. “Come back from the edge.” “This is your last chance,” I told him. “But, don’t worry. I know you’ll find me again. You always do.” I don’t remember the act of jumping though I’m sure I did for the...

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“How to Make a Monster” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #79

Tzipporah You think you know who you can trust. It should be easy to tell those who wish to harm you from those that won’t. And yet, it really is those that are closest to you that can do the most damage. They wear a mask that laughs and smiles in your face while all the while they are plotting your demise. In hindsight, I really should’ve seen it coming. “Priscilla, why?” I asked, clutching at my heart where she had just yanked the essence of my power. Without my power, my knees buckled under me and I crumbled to the floor. She stood ov...

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“Knit, Tink” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #78

The Prince’s Ball is a dreadfully boring affair. It’s too bad that I am the only one in the whole kingdom that can’t get out of it. “Calloway, dear. Please put on a smile, my love,” My mother, Queen Hazel Simone of Sairence said. To my father, King Ellington, she said, “You would think we were sending him to the gallows.” We gathered next to Ambrose who would be announcing our arrival  “Happy faces,” she warned. He blew obnoxiously into his trumpet. Once a hush fell on the gathered guests, Ambrose boomed, “His Majesty King Ellington, H...

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“The Inevitability of Destiny” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #77

I narrowed my eyes at my office’s window. Is that a blizzard outside or have I finally lost it? I crossed to the window and sure enough, it was a snowstorm raging outside. A storm that, to my knowledge, had started suddenly and was not in the forecast.  Is this Chione’s handiwork? I chuckled wryly and then laughed out loud.  When I was little, my dad would say that anytime a storm came out of nowhere, a god or goddess was pissed about something. With a sudden storm like this, it could only be because of Chione, the goddess of snow....

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“The Obsidian Queen” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #75

When I tell people, I don’t remember anything before 21, I get a handful of responses. “Oh, you poor thing,” an older woman would say. Her hand is on my shoulder or my arm and she’s looking at me with sorrowful eyes. In her eyes, I have become her daughter or her granddaughter and she will treat me as if I’m her own. The former frat boy laughs it off. Says he doesn’t remember anything before 21 either. He lost his memories to parties and underage drinking. Most people think it’s trauma. My brain is protecting me by making me forget whatev...

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“Nothing Up My Sleeve” by Maya Ad Astra

Submitted to Contest #74

August 5th I peeked around the corner at the crowd that had gathered in the middle of Latimer Square. At the crowd’s center, slightly elevated above the rest, stood Cyrus Graves. As members of the retrieval team, Mayweather and I had been tasked with bringing Cyrus back home. Since he had ignored all of our attempts to make contact, we decided to go for a more direct approach. “Gather around,” Cyrus said with arms outstretched over the crowd. “Men and women. Children of all ages. As you can see there’s nothing up my sleeve.” He pulled open ...

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“Loving the Sun ” by Maya Ad Astra

⭐️ Shortlisted for Contest #72

Can you love the sun? Is it possible to love something even though it could burn you? Her name was Akilah Williams. She was the sun of my universe. She was, without a doubt, the smartest girl in school. We’d known each other since elementary school though we didn’t talk much. I guess you could say we didn’t really meet until our freshmen year of high school. I remember it was the day of football tryouts. I was sitting on the bleachers and felt as if someone had stuck their hand in my chest and squeezed. I thought to myself. Is this it? Is...

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Author bio

I'm trying to get back to writing as a hobby. I'm super excited to take on Reedsy's weekly prompts. I usually write fantasy or magical realism. I love stories with a little magic thrown in.

Shortlisted 1 story ⭐️

Contest #72
Loving the Sun – read story